Boise State's Spencer Danielson labels Western Michigan 'undefeated,' says 'they absolutely beat Michigan'

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AP Photo/Lydia Ely

While the NCAA can't overturn the most controversial Week 1 result of the 2026 season, and neither can the College Football Playoff, the weight of Western Michigan's season-opening performance at Michigan is still felt across the sport.

Had proper replay protocols been followed in Ann Arbor that day, the MAC's Broncos would have pulled off a program-altering upset against the then-No. 16 Wolverines. The NCAA's FBS Oversight Committee confirmed that earlier this month.

Considering Western Michigan's gone on to win its next two games, it'd be 3-0 right now. That's the way Boise State head coach Spencer Danielson sees those Broncos, anyway.

"I saw a little bit of what happened with the Michigan-Western Michigan game early on," Danielson said Monday, with his team preparing for a Week 4 matchup at Western Michigan.

"When I went back and studied this, unbelievable. They're an undefeated football team, period, end of story."

Danielson continued, initially alluding to the higher powers not being able to change the outcome: "I don't care all the stuff that they can and can't, but you watch that game, they absolutely beat Michigan at Michigan, and that's not hype. That is what happened."

The fourth-year coach of the Pac-12's Broncos tipped his hat to Western Michigan's Lance Taylor and his staff in Kalamazoo.

"I mean, that defense held Michigan to six points," Danielson said. "Unbelievable."

Michigan ended up with 13 points, but Danielson was clearly referring to the fact that the Wolverines scored only one touchdown prior to their dubious Hail Mary attempt, their second go at a prayer to avoid embarrassment in the Big House.

As the story goes, the Big Ten officials wound back the clock and added a second to it after Michigan's first desperation heave barely overshot the end zone and landed in the arms of Western Michigan safety Micah Davis. The Big Ten later explained that, during its replay review, the replay center used a camera trained on a clock in the stadium that showed 0:01 at the time Davis touched the ball upon jumping from out of bounds.

Meanwhile, the clock embedded on the replay feed of the play showed triple zeroes at that juncture. In the wake of that heavily scrutinized 13-12 Michigan victory, the NCAA established a "standard timing protocol" to ensure "consistency in the administration of all college football games."

A memo from NCAA national coordinator of officials Ron Snodgrass reportedly read:

"The official time for all college football games is the time displayed on the in-stadium game clock. When a replay review requires time to be restored or otherwise adjusted, the replay official's decision will be based on the embedded game clock contained within the program feed. If the broadcaster is unable to provide an embedded game clock, the replay official will use the game-clock graphic displayed as part of the broadcast feed.

"This timing protocol should be followed consistently at all institutions and game sites."

Danielson knows what elite competition looks like. In his first full season as Boise State's frontman, he led the program to the College Football Playoff, where it faced Penn State in a Fiesta Bowl CFP quarterfinal. This season, his Broncos gave then-No. 2 Oregon another early-season scare, even leading 17-7 before falling 34-27.

That's 2-1 Boise State's lone loss. Danielson is hoping to guide the program back to the CFP. But first, he'll have to get past a Western Michigan team he classifies as "undefeated."

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